WEBVTT

00:00.000 --> 00:14.840
♪♪

00:14.840 --> 00:18.340
Hello, I'm Bart Matthews, your public defender.

00:18.340 --> 00:22.100
The public defender's salary is paid for by the community,

00:22.100 --> 00:29.600
and he is charged with the responsibility of giving legal aid free of charge to any person who seeks and needs it.

00:29.600 --> 00:37.900
It is the public defender's sworn duty to defend the public accused of crime until they are proved guilty in a court of law.

00:37.900 --> 00:43.900
Now from the files of the public defender, we bring you the case we call Behind Bars.

00:43.900 --> 00:49.280
♪♪♪

00:49.280 --> 00:52.780
One of those sudden, hard to explain accidents, Mr. Matthews.

00:52.780 --> 00:58.340
A flash explosion in one of the boilers turned the place into a sea of escaping steam and flying metal.

00:58.340 --> 01:00.460
Is that where this Mrs. Smith was hurt?

01:00.460 --> 01:03.180
Yes, she was badly burned over her arms and body.

01:03.180 --> 01:04.880
She suffered horribly.

01:04.880 --> 01:07.180
She thought she was going to die.

01:07.180 --> 01:09.560
And that's when she began crying for her baby.

01:09.560 --> 01:10.600
Her baby?

01:10.600 --> 01:13.440
She wanted to see her child before she died.

01:13.440 --> 01:15.520
Well, couldn't that have been arranged?

01:15.520 --> 01:19.360
Yes, but her prison record doesn't contain any reference to a child.

01:19.360 --> 01:22.160
As a matter of fact, we found a number of discrepancies in her record,

01:22.160 --> 01:26.440
including the fact that her real name was never disclosed at the trial.

01:26.440 --> 01:29.000
Then she's not Mrs. Ginny Smith.

01:29.000 --> 01:32.740
No, her real name is Mrs. Tom Richardson.

01:32.740 --> 01:37.040
Well, Warden, what makes you think this is a matter for the public defender?

01:37.040 --> 01:38.840
Well, I've studied her record,

01:38.840 --> 01:44.340
and I've come to the conclusion that there's more to Ginny Smith's case than ever came out in the trial.

01:44.340 --> 01:47.420
Well, just what do you want me to do about this Ginny Smith?

01:47.420 --> 01:50.060
Or Ginny Richardson?

01:50.060 --> 01:53.720
Oh, I just want you to have a talk with her,

01:53.720 --> 01:56.680
and do whatever you think you ought to do.

01:56.680 --> 01:58.680
All right.

02:01.180 --> 02:05.940
Ginny, I want you to meet Mr. Bart Matthews, the public defender.

02:05.940 --> 02:07.520
Hello, Mrs. Smith.

02:07.520 --> 02:08.980
What does he want with me?

02:08.980 --> 02:10.820
He just wants to talk to you.

02:10.820 --> 02:14.080
The same as though you were discussing things with your private attorney.

02:14.080 --> 02:18.540
Everything you say will be held in the strictest confidence.

02:18.540 --> 02:20.280
Thank you, Warden.

02:20.280 --> 02:24.280
Listen to him, Ginny.

02:25.500 --> 02:29.500
All right, what do you want to talk to me about?

02:31.460 --> 02:35.460
I understand you have a young daughter.

02:35.460 --> 02:36.760
Yes.

02:36.760 --> 02:38.760
When did you see her last?

02:38.760 --> 02:40.600
About three years ago.

02:40.600 --> 02:42.300
Since you've been up here?

02:42.300 --> 02:44.900
No, I've been up here two years.

02:44.900 --> 02:47.300
I didn't see her for a whole year before that.

02:47.300 --> 02:50.980
Can you tell me why, Ginny?

02:50.980 --> 02:53.220
My husband and I were divorced.

02:53.220 --> 02:55.820
He got custody of the child.

02:55.820 --> 02:59.820
Tom Richardson, is that your husband's name?

03:00.860 --> 03:02.240
My ex-husband.

03:02.240 --> 03:07.360
I understand that none of this information appears in the records of your trial.

03:07.360 --> 03:08.660
I know.

03:08.660 --> 03:10.580
You were represented by counsel.

03:10.580 --> 03:12.700
Why didn't he bring all of this out?

03:12.700 --> 03:14.280
He didn't know. I didn't tell him.

03:14.280 --> 03:17.380
Why didn't you cooperate with your attorney?

03:17.380 --> 03:21.380
Because it would have meant dragging my husband and...

03:24.600 --> 03:27.180
I didn't want to drag my baby into it.

03:27.180 --> 03:31.480
In other words, you chose not to cooperate with your attorney, is that it?

03:31.480 --> 03:32.840
That's right.

03:32.840 --> 03:34.840
Why?

03:37.320 --> 03:39.980
Why don't you leave me alone? I'm doing my time up here.

03:39.980 --> 03:42.140
Ginny.

03:42.140 --> 03:46.140
If you want to see your baby again, you must cooperate with me.

03:46.860 --> 03:48.860
Why did you hide your identity?

03:48.860 --> 03:53.200
Why didn't you allow your husband to come forward and testify on your behalf?

03:53.200 --> 03:55.460
Why, Ginny?

03:55.460 --> 03:59.460
Because I've caused him enough trouble already.

04:00.000 --> 04:03.120
The way our marriage broke up...

04:03.120 --> 04:05.120
was all my fault.

04:05.120 --> 04:09.120
Mr. Matthews...

04:09.120 --> 04:11.120
I was an alcoholic.

04:11.120 --> 04:13.120
I see.

04:16.120 --> 04:20.120
I had to leave. I had to go my own way.

04:20.120 --> 04:25.120
And then finally I got so tired, I was so alone.

04:25.120 --> 04:28.120
All I cared about was a roof over my head.

04:28.120 --> 04:32.120
Some place to crawl in and rest.

04:32.120 --> 04:36.120
Some place to crawl in and rest.

04:42.120 --> 04:44.120
Yes, can I help you?

04:44.120 --> 04:46.120
Do you have a room?

04:46.120 --> 04:50.120
Yes, but I generally rent my rooms by the week or by the month.

04:50.120 --> 04:54.120
I'll take it for a week.

04:54.120 --> 04:56.120
Thank you.

05:00.120 --> 05:02.120
Do you have any references?

05:02.120 --> 05:04.120
References? No.

05:04.120 --> 05:06.120
Oh, just thought I'd ask.

05:06.120 --> 05:10.120
No one has references anymore.

05:12.120 --> 05:15.120
All right, young woman, I'll show you what I have.

05:15.120 --> 05:16.120
Thank you.

05:16.120 --> 05:19.120
Don't thank me until you see if you like the room.

05:19.120 --> 05:21.120
My name's Mrs. Bassett.

05:21.120 --> 05:23.120
I'm sure I'll like it.

05:23.120 --> 05:25.120
What did you say your name was?

05:25.120 --> 05:27.120
Smith. Mrs. Ginny Smith.

05:27.120 --> 05:30.120
Yeah, I've heard that one before.

05:32.120 --> 05:36.120
Well, Mrs. Bassett, don't you usually knock before entering a gentleman's room?

05:36.120 --> 05:38.120
Oh, excuse me, Mr. Redmond.

05:38.120 --> 05:42.120
Oh, this poor head of mine. These headaches.

05:42.120 --> 05:45.120
I don't know what they'll cause me to do next.

05:45.120 --> 05:49.120
Imagine not even remembering you changed rooms this morning.

05:49.120 --> 05:50.120
Will you forgive me?

05:50.120 --> 05:51.120
Sure, I'll forgive you.

05:51.120 --> 05:53.120
Is this one of your new roomers?

05:53.120 --> 05:56.120
Yes, and her name's Mrs. Smith.

05:56.120 --> 05:58.120
I'll show her your old room.

06:00.120 --> 06:01.120
Mrs. Smith.

06:01.120 --> 06:03.120
Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Smith.

06:03.120 --> 06:05.120
Oh, this is more like it.

06:05.120 --> 06:09.120
My poor head. I'm getting more and more forgetful every day.

06:16.120 --> 06:18.120
You think it'll do?

06:18.120 --> 06:20.120
I beg your pardon?

06:20.120 --> 06:24.120
The room. I asked if you'd think it'll do.

06:24.120 --> 06:27.120
Oh, yes, Mrs. Bassett. It'll be just fine.

06:27.120 --> 06:30.120
I should think it would. This room even has a radio.

06:30.120 --> 06:33.120
That's more than most rooms have.

06:33.120 --> 06:36.120
You know, there's a shortage of good rooms in this neighborhood.

06:36.120 --> 06:39.120
I turn people away every day who are looking for rooms.

06:39.120 --> 06:43.120
Well, people have to have a roof over their heads. They can't sleep in the street.

06:43.120 --> 06:49.120
I run a respectable place, and I usually know something about the people I take in.

06:49.120 --> 06:51.120
A person can't be too careful these days.

06:51.120 --> 06:54.120
Well, you won't have to worry about me, Mrs. Bassett.

06:54.120 --> 06:59.120
Mm-hmm. Well, the rent's payable in advance. Ten dollars.

07:00.120 --> 07:02.120
Do you want it all at once?

07:02.120 --> 07:04.120
All at once.

07:04.120 --> 07:06.120
All right. Ten dollars.

07:06.120 --> 07:08.120
That's fine.

07:08.120 --> 07:11.120
Did you say the name was Mrs. Smith?

07:11.120 --> 07:12.120
Yes, I did.

07:12.120 --> 07:14.120
That's what they all say.

07:14.120 --> 07:16.120
They can't expect me to believe them, though.

07:16.120 --> 07:19.120
I may be old and sick, but I'm not blind.

07:19.120 --> 07:23.120
Well, whether you believe it or not, it is Mrs. Smith.

07:23.120 --> 07:27.120
Well, if you say you're married, young lady, I won't argue with you.

07:27.120 --> 07:29.120
It's your own business, not mine.

07:29.120 --> 07:31.120
I was married. I'm not now.

07:31.120 --> 07:33.120
Hmm. Divorced?

07:33.120 --> 07:34.120
Yes.

07:34.120 --> 07:36.120
I don't approve of divorce.

07:36.120 --> 07:39.120
I was married to the same man for 41 years.

07:39.120 --> 07:42.120
Mr. Bassett, he was a kind old gentleman.

07:42.120 --> 07:46.120
He was always so nice to me whenever I felt poorly.

07:46.120 --> 07:50.120
I say, there's something wrong with a woman who can't hold on to a man.

07:50.120 --> 07:53.120
Mrs. Bassett, I'm sorry, but I'm so tired.

07:53.120 --> 07:55.120
Do you mind?

07:55.120 --> 07:57.120
Oh, excuse me.

07:57.120 --> 07:59.120
These awful headaches.

07:59.120 --> 08:01.120
I'm so...

08:01.120 --> 08:04.120
Remember now, rules of the house.

08:04.120 --> 08:07.120
No men visitors and no drinking.

08:07.120 --> 08:10.120
Yes, Mrs. Bassett, I'll remember.

08:37.120 --> 09:02.120
Tom.

09:02.120 --> 09:04.120
My little Kathy.

09:04.120 --> 09:09.120
Oh, it's been so long since we've been together.

09:09.120 --> 09:18.120
We even have music, Tom.

09:18.120 --> 09:20.120
Kathy should be talking by now.

09:20.120 --> 09:23.120
She's almost two years old.

09:23.120 --> 09:28.120
Oh, how I wish I could be together with you and Kathy again, Tom.

09:28.120 --> 09:31.120
As though nothing had ever happened.

09:31.120 --> 09:33.120
Nine o'clock in the night is still young.

09:33.120 --> 09:39.120
This is Hap Morton, your genial MC, bringing you three hours of your favorite program, Moods of Happiness.

09:39.120 --> 09:45.120
A mood for dreams, a mood for love, as we approach the time of midnight.

09:45.120 --> 09:53.120
This is Hap Morton, bringing you the final quarter hour of your favorite, Moods of Happiness.

09:53.120 --> 10:11.120
Moods of Happiness.

10:11.120 --> 10:31.120
Cheers.

10:31.120 --> 10:46.120
What's going on?

10:46.120 --> 10:47.120
What...

10:47.120 --> 10:50.120
What are you doing here?

10:50.120 --> 10:52.120
Just a little social call.

10:52.120 --> 10:55.120
Miss Miller, don't you like company?

10:55.120 --> 10:57.120
You get out.

10:57.120 --> 10:58.120
What do you want?

10:58.120 --> 11:00.120
Hey, hear the music?

11:00.120 --> 11:02.120
They're playing our song.

11:02.120 --> 11:03.120
How about a little dance, baby?

11:03.120 --> 11:04.120
No.

11:04.120 --> 11:05.120
Come on.

11:05.120 --> 11:06.120
You don't belong in here.

11:06.120 --> 11:07.120
You get out.

11:07.120 --> 11:08.120
Why don't you sit down?

11:08.120 --> 11:11.120
All I asked for was a little dance.

11:11.120 --> 11:13.120
Oh, you're lonely, aren't you?

11:13.120 --> 11:16.120
Oh, no, I'm not lonely.

11:16.120 --> 11:18.120
What's your kid need, baby?

11:18.120 --> 11:23.120
Women who live in places like this, cold little furnished rooms, they're always lonely.

11:23.120 --> 11:24.120
Don't touch me.

11:24.120 --> 11:25.120
Leave me alone.

11:25.120 --> 11:26.120
You get out.

11:26.120 --> 11:28.120
You get out or I'll scream for help.

11:28.120 --> 11:29.120
I will hear you.

11:29.120 --> 11:30.120
Oh, Lady Bassett?

11:30.120 --> 11:33.120
What do you think, old Lady Bassett will help you?

11:33.120 --> 11:36.120
Baby, you've already broken the first rule of the house.

11:36.120 --> 11:37.120
You might as well break the second.

11:37.120 --> 11:38.120
Leave me alone, please.

11:38.120 --> 11:39.120
Please leave me alone.

11:39.120 --> 11:42.120
Oh, baby, a little kiss won't do any harm.

11:42.120 --> 11:46.120
Well...

11:46.120 --> 11:49.120
What are you doing in here, Mr. Redmond?

11:49.120 --> 11:51.120
What's a guy gonna do when a lady invites him in?

11:51.120 --> 11:53.120
No, that's not true.

11:53.120 --> 11:55.120
He forced his way in here.

11:55.120 --> 12:00.120
Playing the radio at this hour of the night, me with my terrible headaches.

12:00.120 --> 12:04.120
And after all I said about not permitting liquor on the premises.

12:04.120 --> 12:05.120
No, he's lying.

12:05.120 --> 12:06.120
He's lying.

12:06.120 --> 12:09.120
Oh, is he now?

12:09.120 --> 12:12.120
Now you'll be telling me this is your husband, the fine fellow.

12:12.120 --> 12:13.120
Give me that picture.

12:13.120 --> 12:14.120
Give me that picture.

12:14.120 --> 12:16.120
You didn't fool me then and you don't fool me now.

12:16.120 --> 12:21.120
He never was your husband.

12:21.120 --> 12:24.120
Oh, now look what you've done.

12:24.120 --> 12:26.120
It's you who'll be doing the looking.

12:26.120 --> 12:30.120
Right this minute you can start looking for another place.

12:30.120 --> 12:40.120
Ah!

12:40.120 --> 12:43.120
What's wrong with her?

12:43.120 --> 12:46.120
The way she's lying there.

12:46.120 --> 12:49.120
She's not dead.

12:49.120 --> 12:54.120
She can't be dead.

12:54.120 --> 12:56.120
She is, baby.

12:56.120 --> 13:00.120
You know who killed her.

13:00.120 --> 13:02.120
No.

13:02.120 --> 13:05.120
I didn't do it.

13:05.120 --> 13:06.120
I didn't kill her.

13:06.120 --> 13:08.120
I didn't kill her.

13:08.120 --> 13:10.120
Remember, baby.

13:10.120 --> 13:13.120
This is your rap.

13:13.120 --> 13:20.120
It's all yours.

13:20.120 --> 13:24.120
According to the bill of particulars that resulted in your indictment for murder,

13:24.120 --> 13:27.120
you were charged with beating Mrs. Bassett to death.

13:27.120 --> 13:28.120
No, I didn't beat her.

13:28.120 --> 13:31.120
In your intoxicated state, perhaps.

13:31.120 --> 13:34.120
No, I didn't beat her, Mr. Matthews.

13:34.120 --> 13:37.120
I remember that moment as if it were now.

13:37.120 --> 13:38.120
What about the liquor, Jenny?

13:38.120 --> 13:41.120
I haven't had one drop since that night.

13:41.120 --> 13:43.120
And I don't need to drink now, Mr. Matthews.

13:43.120 --> 13:46.120
What I've been through has cured me.

13:46.120 --> 13:48.120
I wish I could believe that, Jenny.

13:48.120 --> 13:49.120
You can believe that.

13:49.120 --> 13:50.120
You can.

13:50.120 --> 13:55.120
All I care about, Mr. Matthews, is seeing my little girl again.

13:55.120 --> 13:57.120
It's all I care about.

13:57.120 --> 13:59.120
This is what kept me alive after the accident.

13:59.120 --> 14:03.120
I prayed to stay alive so that I could see my baby again.

14:03.120 --> 14:06.120
Can you help me, Mr. Matthews?

14:06.120 --> 14:07.120
Can you help me?

14:07.120 --> 14:08.120
Please help me.

14:08.120 --> 14:13.120
I'll do what I can, Jenny.

14:13.120 --> 14:20.120
The first thing I did for Jenny was to locate her husband.

14:20.120 --> 14:21.120
Tom Richardson?

14:21.120 --> 14:22.120
Yes.

14:22.120 --> 14:26.120
I'm Bart Matthews, the public defender.

14:26.120 --> 14:28.120
What do you want to see me about?

14:28.120 --> 14:29.120
How is Kathy?

14:29.120 --> 14:31.120
Kathy?

14:31.120 --> 14:32.120
How do you know about Kathy?

14:32.120 --> 14:33.120
Is she all right?

14:33.120 --> 14:34.120
She's fine.

14:34.120 --> 14:36.120
She's taking her nap.

14:36.120 --> 14:40.120
What's this all about?

14:40.120 --> 14:44.120
Recognize who that is?

14:44.120 --> 14:45.120
Where did you get this?

14:45.120 --> 14:48.120
Your wife, isn't it, Mr. Richardson?

14:48.120 --> 14:49.120
It's my ex-wife.

14:49.120 --> 14:51.120
We're divorced.

14:51.120 --> 14:53.120
Look, I don't know what your racket is, but...

14:53.120 --> 14:56.120
No racket, Mr. Richardson.

14:56.120 --> 15:00.120
As I told you, I'm the public defender.

15:00.120 --> 15:01.120
I'm sorry I didn't mean that.

15:01.120 --> 15:05.120
I'm just trying to say that I'm not interested in my ex-wife anymore.

15:05.120 --> 15:06.120
The whole chapter's over.

15:06.120 --> 15:08.120
I've got closed book.

15:08.120 --> 15:10.120
She doesn't have any claim on me.

15:10.120 --> 15:12.120
What about Kathy?

15:12.120 --> 15:14.120
She doesn't have any claim on Kathy either.

15:14.120 --> 15:16.120
I want to help your wife.

15:16.120 --> 15:17.120
My ex-wife?

15:17.120 --> 15:19.120
Well, you came to the wrong guy.

15:19.120 --> 15:22.120
I did all I could for her.

15:22.120 --> 15:25.120
If she got into some kind of trouble, that's her own lookout, not mine.

15:25.120 --> 15:28.120
Don't you know what kind of trouble?

15:28.120 --> 15:31.120
I'm not interested.

15:31.120 --> 15:35.120
Every time I turned the other way, she was hitting the bottle.

15:35.120 --> 15:38.120
It's like some kind of sickness.

15:38.120 --> 15:40.120
She was so weak, she didn't know how to fight it.

15:40.120 --> 15:43.120
And then came that awful day.

15:43.120 --> 15:45.120
I'd thrown out all the liquor in the house,

15:45.120 --> 15:50.120
so Ginny got the habit of running down to the corner bar during the baby's nap.

15:50.120 --> 15:56.120
Only this time, she left a hot iron on the table, and the place caught fire.

15:56.120 --> 15:58.120
The cops found her in the bar.

15:58.120 --> 15:59.120
Was Kathy hurt?

15:59.120 --> 16:02.120
We got her out just in time.

16:02.120 --> 16:04.120
The judge put Ginny on probation.

16:04.120 --> 16:06.120
I filed for a divorce.

16:06.120 --> 16:08.120
Got custody of the child.

16:08.120 --> 16:12.120
Just about everything else I asked for.

16:12.120 --> 16:16.120
Including your wife's resignation from the human race, no doubt.

16:16.120 --> 16:18.120
All right, what else could I have done?

16:18.120 --> 16:20.120
You might have tried helping her.

16:20.120 --> 16:22.120
All right, what did you say you were, the public defender?

16:22.120 --> 16:24.120
Okay, you help her.

16:24.120 --> 16:27.120
You don't seem to understand, Mr. Richardson.

16:27.120 --> 16:30.120
Do you have any idea where your wife is?

16:30.120 --> 16:32.120
No.

16:32.120 --> 16:37.120
For the past two years, she's occupied a cell in the women's penitentiary.

16:37.120 --> 16:39.120
What?

16:39.120 --> 16:40.120
What for?

16:40.120 --> 16:43.120
For murder.

16:43.120 --> 16:44.120
Not Ginny?

16:44.120 --> 16:47.120
Yes, Ginny.

16:47.120 --> 16:49.120
When did it happen?

16:49.120 --> 16:50.120
Why didn't she tell me about it?

16:50.120 --> 16:53.120
She didn't want to bring your name or Kathy's name into it.

16:53.120 --> 16:59.120
She stood trial as Ginny Smith.

16:59.120 --> 17:01.120
Murder.

17:01.120 --> 17:04.120
She was charged with beating her landlady to death.

17:04.120 --> 17:07.120
Oh, no, no, that's wrong, Mr. Matthews.

17:07.120 --> 17:08.120
What's wrong?

17:08.120 --> 17:10.120
Ginny couldn't beat anyone to death.

17:10.120 --> 17:12.120
She's not, she's the opposite type.

17:12.120 --> 17:15.120
She's a mouse, she's timid.

17:15.120 --> 17:17.120
That was all part of her weakness.

17:17.120 --> 17:19.120
Why she took the drink.

17:19.120 --> 17:21.120
So she wouldn't be afraid.

17:21.120 --> 17:25.120
Afraid of what?

17:25.120 --> 17:29.120
Maybe it's all my fault.

17:29.120 --> 17:31.120
I've been afraid to face it.

17:31.120 --> 17:34.120
I was a prisoner of war in Korea.

17:34.120 --> 17:37.120
I was captured the same week that Kathy was born.

17:37.120 --> 17:40.120
They held me for 11 months.

17:40.120 --> 17:44.120
Including locking me up in a hole for 22 days.

17:44.120 --> 17:47.120
You don't get over the kind of treatment I had in a hurry.

17:47.120 --> 17:52.120
When I got back, I guess I didn't give Ginny much of a chance.

17:52.120 --> 17:55.120
She couldn't have done it, not Ginny.

17:55.120 --> 17:58.120
Mr. Matthews, isn't there anything we could do to help her?

17:58.120 --> 18:00.120
There is something you could do, Tom.

18:00.120 --> 18:03.120
Tomorrow's Sunday, visiting day at the prison.

18:03.120 --> 18:07.120
Why don't you go to see her and take Kathy along?

18:07.120 --> 18:21.120
No.

18:21.120 --> 18:24.120
It would really help her if she could see Kathy.

18:24.120 --> 18:27.120
We'll be up there, Mr. Matthews.

18:27.120 --> 18:30.120
Both Kathy and I.

18:30.120 --> 18:35.120
While Tom Richardson and Kathy were renewing their acquaintance with Kathy's mother,

18:35.120 --> 18:38.120
I went over the records of the case.

18:38.120 --> 18:41.120
It soon became evident that the key to the entire matter

18:41.120 --> 18:44.120
was the witness named Al Redmond,

18:44.120 --> 18:47.120
who was present in the room when the murder was committed.

18:47.120 --> 18:49.120
If it was a murder,

18:49.120 --> 18:53.120
we asked the police department to aid us in locating Mr. Al Redmond.

18:53.120 --> 18:55.120
Good morning, Mr. Matthews.

18:55.120 --> 18:57.120
Hello, Bill. Did you locate Redmond?

18:57.120 --> 19:00.120
I found him in another rooming house not three blocks from the scene of the crime.

19:00.120 --> 19:06.120
What are we waiting for? Let's go.

19:06.120 --> 19:12.120
Tom, the door is unlocked.

19:12.120 --> 19:14.120
What can I do for you boys?

19:14.120 --> 19:16.120
I'm Bart Matthews, the public defender.

19:16.120 --> 19:19.120
This is Bill Benton.

19:19.120 --> 19:21.120
I don't need no defender today.

19:21.120 --> 19:23.120
You guys mind if I go in and shave him?

19:23.120 --> 19:27.120
No, go right ahead, Al. It's your skin.

19:27.120 --> 19:29.120
What do you mean by that crack?

19:29.120 --> 19:33.120
Do you remember the Jenny Smith trial?

19:33.120 --> 19:36.120
Yeah. I remember it.

19:36.120 --> 19:40.120
Tell us what you saw, Al. What did you witness?

19:40.120 --> 19:42.120
Look, I don't have to tell you guys nothing.

19:42.120 --> 19:44.120
I'll take all my talking to the witness stand.

19:44.120 --> 19:45.120
Not afraid, are you, Al?

19:45.120 --> 19:47.120
What do I got to be afraid of?

19:47.120 --> 19:49.120
Nothing, as far as I can see.

19:49.120 --> 19:52.120
What were you doing in that room, Al?

19:52.120 --> 19:55.120
Listen, beat it, Buster, before I get rough.

19:55.120 --> 19:58.120
I wouldn't try it, Al. There's a witness.

19:58.120 --> 20:00.120
You didn't stand a chance in court.

20:00.120 --> 20:03.120
The way Jenny Smith didn't stand a chance when you pinned that wrap on her.

20:03.120 --> 20:07.120
What do you mean, pinned it on her? I saw her do it with my own eyes.

20:07.120 --> 20:11.120
You certainly cried, murder.

20:11.120 --> 20:12.120
Yeah, I sure did.

20:12.120 --> 20:14.120
And testified to that effect in court.

20:14.120 --> 20:16.120
Yeah, that's me, star witness.

20:16.120 --> 20:19.120
And saved your own skin.

20:19.120 --> 20:21.120
Look, what are you talking about? I tell you, I saw her do it with my own eyes.

20:21.120 --> 20:26.120
She come in and she yanked the old woman by the hair and yanked on it until the old woman fell on her face and died.

20:26.120 --> 20:30.120
How did she yank the old lady's hair, Al? How did she do it?

20:30.120 --> 20:32.120
What do you mean?

20:32.120 --> 20:35.120
Let's act it out. Sort of reenact the crime.

20:35.120 --> 20:38.120
Now, did she come up on her like this?

20:38.120 --> 20:40.120
Yeah, in a way.

20:40.120 --> 20:42.120
And then did she go like this?

20:42.120 --> 20:44.120
Yeah.

20:44.120 --> 20:45.120
And then did she do this?

20:45.120 --> 20:48.120
Ow! Ow! What? What? Come on!

20:48.120 --> 20:50.120
What's the big idea? Cut it out, will you? What's the big idea?

20:50.120 --> 20:52.120
Just checking, Al.

20:52.120 --> 20:54.120
You're still on your feet. You didn't fall down and die.

20:54.120 --> 20:58.120
Yeah, I'm a healthy big guy, not a sick old woman with headaches all the time.

20:58.120 --> 21:00.120
Wait a minute.

21:00.120 --> 21:02.120
Did you say that Mrs. Bassett was a sick woman?

21:02.120 --> 21:05.120
That's why she always complained and always ran off to the doctor.

21:05.120 --> 21:07.120
You wouldn't happen to remember the name of the doctor, would you?

21:07.120 --> 21:09.120
Look, how would I remember the doctor?

21:09.120 --> 21:13.120
Well, we'll find it. You just make sure you're around in case we need you.

21:13.120 --> 21:17.120
Yes, we may have to call the star witness back to the stand again.

21:17.120 --> 21:20.120
All right, all right, I'll be around.

21:20.120 --> 21:22.120
Play ball.

21:22.120 --> 21:27.120
We ran down Mrs. Bassett's physician, a Dr. Silas Morgan,

21:27.120 --> 21:31.120
only to find that he, too, had died shortly before the trial.

21:31.120 --> 21:34.120
I called the physician's credit bureau

21:34.120 --> 21:39.120
and found that Dr. Morgan's practice had been taken over by a Dr. James Pollard.

21:39.120 --> 21:42.120
Did you destroy those records, Dr. Pollard?

21:42.120 --> 21:44.120
Destroy them?

21:44.120 --> 21:46.120
No, I didn't destroy them.

21:46.120 --> 21:50.120
I just transferred them up to the attic to give us a little more room down here.

21:50.120 --> 21:52.120
Why, is there anything wrong?

21:52.120 --> 21:56.120
No, nothing now. Do you mind if we look around your attic?

21:56.120 --> 21:59.120
No, the place is yours, if you don't mind the dust.

21:59.120 --> 22:02.120
Not at all.

22:02.120 --> 22:05.120
There was no system, no order to any of it.

22:05.120 --> 22:09.120
We went through an accumulation of 40 years of medical practice,

22:09.120 --> 22:13.120
thousands of cases of individual reports and histories,

22:13.120 --> 22:16.120
until we found what we were looking for.

22:16.120 --> 22:19.120
There's no question about it, Mr. Matthews.

22:19.120 --> 22:22.120
These encephalographic findings definitely indicate

22:22.120 --> 22:27.120
an advanced and progressively worsening condition of hardening of the arteries in the brain.

22:27.120 --> 22:30.120
Could you say how serious it was, Doctor?

22:30.120 --> 22:33.120
Serious enough to corroborate Dr. Morgan's written opinion

22:33.120 --> 22:37.120
that Mrs. Bassett had a life expectancy of only a few months,

22:37.120 --> 22:41.120
that any form of excitement would cause instantaneous death.

22:41.120 --> 22:44.120
Would you be willing to make a sworn statement to that effect?

22:44.120 --> 22:46.120
A great deal depends upon it, Doctor.

22:46.120 --> 22:49.120
In that case, I would. Thanks.

22:52.120 --> 22:57.120
With Dr. Pollard's medical testimony and the evidence of Dr. Morgan's records to support us,

22:57.120 --> 23:03.120
we prepared a petition for a pardon which was presented to the Governor of the state.

23:03.120 --> 23:15.120
The Governor granted the pardon.

23:34.120 --> 23:36.120
We'll never forget what you've done for us.

23:36.120 --> 23:38.120
Never as long as we live.

23:38.120 --> 23:40.120
Can I drive you home?

23:40.120 --> 23:43.120
I have my car. Besides, we have a stop to make.

23:43.120 --> 23:45.120
The Marriage License Bureau.

23:48.120 --> 23:52.120
As you just saw, Jenny Smith, or rather, Virginia Richardson,

23:52.120 --> 23:59.120
is now reunited with a husband and daughter who will someday forget that they were ever apart.

23:59.120 --> 24:06.120
And so a woman who was once forgotten by the whole world has now found her place in that world again.

24:10.120 --> 24:14.120
We congratulate public defender James D. Cosgrove and his staff

24:14.120 --> 24:29.120
for outstanding achievement in the cause of justice.

24:44.120 --> 24:53.120
© BF-WATCH TV 2021